"Xingguang, as long as you succeed in the marriage with Huo Wen'an, the Xu Family can establish a connection with the Huo Family. By then, your Brother Jiaoyang's official career will surely skyrocket, and your Sister Mingyue can marry into a wealthy noble family. Our Xu Family will enjoy endless prosperity and wealth!"
Xu Zeqing grew more and more excited as he spoke, losing all his former elegance and appearing frenzied.
Xu Zeqing grabbed Xu Xingguang's frail shoulders and raved, "Once I have power and influence, Dad will definitely take down the Jiang Family and drag Jiang Heng to your grave to beg for your forgiveness!"
After this round of brainwashing, Xu Zeqing didn't see the act of personally killing his daughter and sending her into a marriage as a wrongdoing, but rather a helpless yet noble gesture.
The more frenzied Xu Zeqing became, the calmer Xu Xingguang was. It was a coldness that spoke of a soul already dead, severed from love.
Having reincarnated ten times, no matter what sufferings and tortures she endured, she always dared not forget the road back home. She struggled to return home, longing to reunite with her family, but they sold her!
Once wasn't enough, they had to sell her a second time!
Besides...
When did she ever have a brother named Jiaoyang and a sister named Ming Yue?
Xu Xingguang was the only daughter of the Xu Family and never received love from her grandparents who favored boys over girls.
When she was young, her grandmother always subtly hinted to her mother to have another son, but her mother feared that having a son would make her daughter even more neglected by the Xu Family, so she secretly used contraception.
Her grandfather disliked her for being a girl, and during the New Year and other festivals when they returned to their hometown to honor ancestors, she was not allowed to step into the ancestral hall.
So, where did the brother and sister Xu Zeqing mentioned come from?
Could they be illegitimate children?
The thought that Xu Zeqing not only kept another woman outside behind her mother's back but also secretly bore two children older than her made Xu Xingguang feel sick.
However, since Xu Zeqing could be heartless enough to trade his daughter for wealth and honor, his infidelity wasn't considered extreme betrayal.
"Xingguang, the bond between us as father and daughter is thin in this life. In the next life, we shall renew this bond!" With that, Xu Zeqing hardened his heart again, pressing down forcefully on Xu Xingguang's oxygen mask, pulling it off directly!
At the moment the oxygen mask was truly removed, the last trace of familial ties Xu Xingguang had with Xu Zeqing completely shattered.
Even after ten reincarnations and experiencing various deceptions and betrayals, Xu Xingguang couldn't help but feel chilly at heart.
*
Beep beep beep——
The oxygen mask was removed, and the ventilator incessantly emitted alarm sounds, yet all the data representing the patient's physical parameters were normal.
Xu Zeqing stared at the wavy lines on the ventilator's screen, his facial expression gradually turning confused. Logically, after being removed from the ventilator, Xu Xingguang's breathing should weaken rapidly, leading directly to her death, and those wavy lines should have turned into straight lines.
How could this be?
Could it be...
Xu Zeqing realized something, his gaze suddenly shifted upward, and he was caught off-guard, falling into a pair of deep, beautiful eyes.
Moonlight and starlight intertwined in those beautiful eyes, like a brilliant galaxy, stunningly beautiful.
Xu Xingguang, who had been asleep for three years, woke up!
"Dad." Not having spoken for three years, Xu Xingguang's lips and throat were very dry, and her voice, upon suddenly speaking, sounded incredibly hoarse, like sandpaper scraping on a cement wall.
The sound made Xu Zeqing's scalp tingle with fear.
Xu Zeqing squeezed the oxygen mask in his hand, as if holding a piece of flint.
Instead of getting angry, Xu Xingguang looked at the oxygen mask in Xu Zeqing's hand and smiled warmly. But her words scared Xu Zeqing pale: "How does it feel to personally pull off your daughter's oxygen mask, satisfying?"
Nothing could be more terrifying for a father than to be caught in the act of killing his own daughter by the daughter herself.
"Xing... Xingguang..." Xu Zeqing stuttered, his gaze uncontrollably darting towards the pillow beneath Xu Xingguang's head.
Nobody else was aware of Xu Xingguang's unexpected awakening tonight, apart from the father and daughter.
A person newly awakened from a vegetative state, with a weak body, had no ability to resist. As long as he picked up the pillow, pressed it against Xu Xingguang's face, and waited for a few minutes, she would die. Everything could proceed as originally planned.
For a moment, various evil thoughts flashed in Xu Zeqing's mind, those bold ideas excited him yet also frightened him.
Noticing Xu Zeqing's gaze, Xu Xingguang guessed his intention, feeling utterly disappointed in her heart.
"Dad." Xu Xingguang suddenly tapped her pillow considerately, sincerely suggesting to Xu Zeqing: "Why don't you just smother me to death while no one finds out? If you miss today, you won't have another chance to act."
The remark made Xu Zeqing panic-stricken, for she could see through his evil thoughts!
Looking at his daughter with a thinly veiled sinister smile, Xu Zeqing felt a chill down his spine. After three years of slumber, his daughter seemed to have changed somewhat.
Xu Zeqing had never killed anyone, and Xu Xingguang's image of a smile with hidden daggers frightened him immensely, and his murderous intent instantly dissipated.
In a flash, Xu Zeqing found the perfect excuse for himself.
Xu Zeqing put on a look of deep sorrow, hypocritically repenting: "Xingguang, it's all because Dad is useless!"
Tears fell as soon as they were summoned, and Xu Zeqing began to cry: "That Jiang Heng, he's nothing! When he pursued you initially, it was actually to gain your trust and wanted to use your blood to save his first love's life!"
"I disagreed, so he threatened me, even boasting he would kill our whole family! I had no choice but to agree!"
"Two months ago, that vile woman's condition was successfully controlled. Jiang Heng, worried I might retaliate, directly annexed our Xu Family's enterprises! Now the company is bankrupt, Dad is in debt, and your grandpa's health is poor and needs treatment. Dad really couldn't afford your medical bills anymore, so I could only..."
"I could only... give you up." This mix of truth and lies, coupled with Xu Zeqing's masterful performance, would make even an Oscar-winning actor step aside.
Xu Xingguang couldn't help but applaud Xu Zeqing's acting skills.
If she hadn't heard Xu Zeqing's previous unfeeling words, she really might have been led by the nose by Xu Zeqing, transferring all her hatred onto Jiang Heng.
What Jiang Heng did, Xu Xingguang naturally intended to repay manifold. But Xu Zeqing's actions of selling his daughter twice for glory were equally unforgivable!
That the Xu Family had fallen into such a state due to Jiang Heng could be considered dragging down by Xu Xingguang. The cost of treating a vegetative patient was indeed a huge burden for the Xu Family now, and Xu Xingguang could understand Zhou Xinling deciding to cease her treatment.
But she could accept her father giving up on her due to poverty, yet not because he sold her for glory and wealth.
At this moment, another series of footsteps sounded outside the ward.
Bam!
The door was abruptly pushed open, and a middle-aged woman rushed in.
Despite the cold weather, she was wearing an open coat with a form-fitting black suit underneath, making her figure appear voluptuous and very sexy.